


Compromise

by AuroraNova



Series: The Vadari Chronicles [6]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-03
Updated: 2019-07-03
Packaged: 2020-06-03 12:21:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19463884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuroraNova/pseuds/AuroraNova
Summary: “Cheating is highly subjective.”Garak finds a way to practice his sneaking and shooting skills. Naturally, he plays dirty.





	Compromise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [zaan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zaan/gifts).



> With thanks to zaan for helping and encouraging me to organize the Deadly Sins event.

As he’s slinking around in the dark trying to shoot Garak, Julian once again enjoys not feeling like his enhancements give him an advantage. It’s one of the lovely things about Garak, in fact. He can match or best anything Julian throws at him.

Now, where is the man?

Julian would have superior hearing even without his genetic resequencing, but Cardassians see better in low light, so it evens out. He follows a soft sound to the right, doing his best to dart quickly behind the low walls dotting the room.

Garak thinks little of human recreational activities, on the whole. He doesn’t mind chess, though of course he considers kotra the better game of strategy, and he approves of martial arts, but those are the exceptions. Rather like how his appreciation for _Anna Karenina_ (which he insists is a warning against failing to obey one’s familial and social duties) breaks up his general dissatisfaction with human literature.

He found a new human activity of interest when a fellow gardener mention laser tag, and promptly booked a reservation. “And here I thought I’d have no chance to practice my aim until we have power for holosuites,” he said when asking Julian to join him, because of course Garak is worried about losing his edge.

Laser tag has enjoyed a moderate resurgence in popularity in the last twenty years. The last time Julian played, he was a nineteen-year-old cadet and deliberately missed half his shots. It’s much more fun this time around.

They’ve set the game so the first person to get three hits wins, and it’s tied at two each. Julian won’t be surprised if Garak wins, but it would be awfully nice to best him. The trouble is, he’s the sneakiest man Julian has ever known, and excels at silently appearing out of nowhere.

There. Julian catches a rustling noise to the left. Arm outstretched so he can shoot at the first possible chance, he rounds the corner…

… and is promptly blinded. The target on his chest emits a beep and the lights fade on. Game over.

Through the spots in his vision, Julian can see Garak smiling smugly.

“You cheated!”

“I did no such thing,” says Garak in his best affronted tone. “I read every rule, and there is no prohibition on using an outside light source to disable one’s opponent.”

“It goes without saying.” To everyone else, that is. If there’s a loophole to be found, Garak can be relied upon to exploit it.

“I told you there’s a similar game for Cardassian children.”

“Ohenekala.”

“No. Ohenekala is a sea bird. Ohenikala is the equivalent activity, and children are encouraged to equip themselves with tools to achieve victory.”

They only have three minutes left in the reservation, so there’s no point in starting a new game. Julian heads for the door. “I’m sure you excelled, but this isn’t the Cardassian version.”

“I’d noticed. If it was, each successful shot would give a shock to the target.”

“You shock children?”

“Only mildly. Not dangerously, just enough to teach them that getting shot has consequences.”

That speaks volumes about Cardassian childrearing. Presuming Garak is telling the truth, the odds of which Julian thinks are above eighty percent.

“I hope you won’t let your defeat stop you from joining me again,” Garak says. “It’s one of our better entertainment options.”

As though he’s interested in laser tag for the fun of it. They both know perfectly well he’s using it to keep himself prepared for any possible attack. “There’s always the sauna,” says Julian.

“I am not that desperate.”

A few days ago Garak heard of a sauna reopening some seventy kilometers away in the moon’s largest (but still quite small) city. Julian then had to break it to him that human saunas involve very little clothing. Evidently the Cardassian take allows for one to be fully dressed – and incidentally, armed. Garak doesn’t go anywhere without at least one knife on his person. That’s difficult to pull off wearing only a towel, though if anyone could, it would be Garak, designing himself a towel with a sheathed blade sewn into it.

“You never know. It’s possible you’re missing out on a wonderful experience.” Not that Julian has any interest in saunas, either. Sitting around sweating isn’t his idea of a good time, but he can’t pass up the opportunity to tease.

“I can do without the experience of having everyone stare at my scantily-clad body as though I’m some kind of museum exhibit on comparative biology.”

“It could be very educational for them.”

Garak doesn’t even deign to respond.

They step out into a warm summer evening. Garak has been happy with the weather of late, though Julian has caught him squinting in the sunlight. With the setting sun in front of them, he’s doing it again.

“I don’t understand why you won’t wear sunglasses,” says Julian. Cardassia used to be a lush jungle world until the inhabitants overexploited the natural resources, and their physiology remains adapted for the lower light of a rainforest floor. If the lights on DS9 were too bright, he imagines the sun here could be downright painful.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“Considering what I just said, the answer is clearly no.”

“It would advertise my weakness.”

Leave it to Garak to consider the psychological implications of protective eyewear. “You’re not doing yourself any favors.”

“On the contrary, I’m making it less likely others think to exploit me, and it would help if you cease discussing the subject in public.”

One of these days, he’ll get Garak to wear sunglasses.

Julian is about to bring the conversation back around to setting unambiguous conditions for any future games of laser tag when he sees Kara and Lutro walking their way, hand in hand. Kara spots them and heads over.

“I see your friend Ms. Whitsell is inclined for forgive my perceived transgressions against you,” remarks Garak.

“She doesn’t know what to make of you.” It’s a fair enough response, really, and one which appears to please Garak.

“Hi Julian,” says Kara. “Garak.”

Garak nods politely. “Good evening.”

“Enjoying the longest day of the year?” asks Lutro.

“We just finished playing laser tag, actually.” And Julian is going to get Garak back for the stunt he pulled. He’s just not sure how yet.

“I haven’t played in forever,” Kara says. “We should all go together sometime.”

Julian doubts that is a good idea. “Maybe after Garak demonstrates he can play without cheating.”

When Kara and Lutro both look askance at Garak, he attempts to defend himself. “Cheating is highly subjective.”

“You blinded me!”

“And I won.”

“You know what,” says Kara, “that doesn’t sound like fun to me.”

“He’s going to follow the letter _and_ the spirit of the rules every other game,” Julian says, giving Garak a warning glare to make it clear he’s serious. It’s a matter of principle, the principle in question being not allowing Garak to get his way all the time. Every now and then you’ve got to draw a line with him and defend it vigorously. That’s how Julian first got him to read Shakespeare, by refusing to read any more Cardassian books until Garak read a human one. “Otherwise he’ll have to find someone else to blind.”

“I won’t use that tactic again. You’ll be expecting it.”

“Every other game,” Julian repeats. “Then when we play dirty, we’ll both do it.”

Garak cheers at this. He also has slim prospects for finding anyone else willing to put up with his tricks, so he doesn’t have much choice if he wants to continue this ‘training exercise’ but to agree to Julian’s terms. (Julian cannot see his gardening friend, Sorvek, playing laser tag at all, never mind Garak’s creative version.)

Lutro glances between Julian and Garak for a moment before declaring, “I think I’ll pass.”

“Let me know how the no-cheating games go,” says Kara. “If anyone blinded me to win at laser tag, I’d want to smack them.”

Smacking isn’t Julian’s style, but he isn’t above getting his hands on something which will make Garak sneeze uncontrollably during a game.

On reflection, they might need to set a few additional ground rules for the tricks.

“I find adding the unexpected makes the pursuit much more interesting,” says Garak, by which he means that if it was a real fight nothing would be out of bounds, so why restrict himself unnecessarily during his training games?

Kara isn’t the sort to hide her skepticism. “Right. When you’re not on the receiving end.”

“I would never be so hypocritical. In fact, I look forward to discovering what challenges Julian dreams up.”

He’s as good as his word. After a game where he controls himself and follows all the rules, he’s extremely proud the next time when Julian puffs a Betazoid spice in his face before running off to the sound of Garak trying and failing not to sneeze.


End file.
